Chamaeleo jacksonii (common names Jackson's Chameleon or Three-horned Chameleon) is an African chameleon belonging to the chameleon family (Chamaeleonidae). The subspecies distinct to Hawaii is called the Chamaeleo jacksonii xantholophus.



Meet Jackson, who is not a pet. He was found this morning and released after this pose. While driving to a Church social, I found him crossing the road I was traveling, narrowly missing him. Slow in all of their movement, I had time to turn around pull off to the side of the road and pick him up before the next car arrived.

He is completely docile, not becoming the slightest bit agitated at being lifted off the road in the palm of my hand. When under stress their coloration becomes darker. When cold or under severe stress, a solid dark brown color dominates. Note the dorsal crest that runs the length of the trunk. Gular striations are apparent here, because this one is a juvenile animal.

Males have three prominent horns. Two originate in front of the eyes (i.e., preocular horns) and the third, rostral horn, from the snout.

We took him to the social with us, placed him in a hanging plant and picked him up three hours later. Pictures were taken by Gecko in his livingroom. He is now freely roaming my back yard probably nuzzling up to insects, grasshoppers and the like.

David Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Naloiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalakaua, was his distinguished name.

He attended what was known then as the Royal School and grew to be multiskilled, becoming the Hawai`i's Postmaster General. At midlife the Hawaiian Legislature elected him as king. While in that position, he then had the authority to restore elements of ancient Hawaiian culture lost and replaced by Christian teachings. Such was the demise of the hula.



But trouble began in 1887 with the imposition on the king of a new constitution that sharply limited his powers.

Kalakaua governed from 1874 to 1891, and his sister, Queen Liliuokalani succeeded him upon his death.

Remembered and memorialized as the "Merrie Monarch", we have this annual festival.



The Merrie Monarch Festival runs a full week with cultural events every year in Hilo on the big island of Hawaii (Gecko's home)The celebrations begin on Easter Sunday and close with the hula competition events at Edith Kanaka'ole Tennis Stadium.

The following pictures were taken by Gecko at the initial noncompetitive performances last week.



Regretably, I am not sufficiently a Geeky Gecko to have included the music. But it is deeply tribal and powerful.

Note the Yellow Oleander blossom on this bush at the end of my driveway. This is the first time I have seen a blossom. It's beautiful, isn't it. Well take a step back.

The Oleander is one of the most poisonous plants with a extremely high toxicity from many dangerous compounds, many of which can be deadly to people, especially young children. The most significant of these toxins are oleandrin and neriine, which are cardiac glycosides which are present in all parts of the plant, but are most concentrated in the sap. Oleander is also known to hold its toxicity even after drying.

It is thought that a single handful or 10-20 leaves consumed by an adult can cause an adverse reaction, and a single leaf could be lethal to an infant or child!

According to the Toxic Exposure Surveillance System (TESS) in 2002 there were 847 known human poisonings in the United States related to Oleander (Watson 2003). These deaths occur disproportionally in Hawaii. Most animals can suffer a reaction or death from this plant.

Ingestion can cause both gastrointestinal and cardiac effects. The gastrointestinal effects can consist of nausea and vomiting, excess salivation, abdominal pain, diarrhea that may or may not contain blood.

Cardiac reactions consist of irregular heart rate, sometimes characterized by a racing heart at first that then slows to below normal further along in the reaction. The heart may also beat erratically with no sign of a specific rhythm. Extremities may become pale and cold due to poor or irregular circulation. For me, this would be similiar to my most infrequent visits to the dentist.

Reactions to poisonings from this plant can also affect the central nervous system. These symptoms can include drowsiness, tremors or shaking of the muscles, seizures, collapse, and even coma that can lead to death.

In Hawaii, many live off the land. It would surprise the tourist how many who live here are homeless. Eventhough the weather is friendly to the homeless, dangers remain.

---------------------------------------------------------------

A bumblebee should be in a world of joy within this blossom. Gecko took this one as well another twenty yards down the road.

The Hawaiian 'Awapuhi-ko'oko'o means walking-stick ginger.



The ginger family (Zingiberaceae) is mostly native to the fields and rain forests of Indo-Malaysia. Here in Hawaii they are grown for their roots and sold in Hawaiian markets. Trade of ginger was developed first in Indonesian and along the coasts of the Indian Ocean. Eventually gourmets in the Mediterranean area became well acquainted with them. Even the early Greek and Roman writings have recorded the use of ginger as a spice..

Although more popularly known as a spice the flower of gingers are one of the more widely used tropical plants. These bright red flowers can be seen during our festival times in the South Pacific as colorful dresses. But, as you can imagine, they are a colorful contributor to most local flower arrangements - freshly cut from the garden or from wild patches. Bracts are also made into stunning leis (garlands) such as in Samoa where the red ginger lei is worn by royalty in important ceremonies.

Many gingers have medicinal uses from helping asthma to relieving stomach aches. Others gingers are used as perfumes and some are thought to have supernatural values in casting away evil spirits. The Hawaiians once used the foamy flower heads of the variegated wild ginger for shampooing hair and quenching thirst.

Young ginger roots are often pickled in vinegar or sherry as a snack or just cooked as an ingredient in many dishes. They can also be stewed in boiling water to make ginger tea, to which honey is often added as a sweetener. The juice from old ginger roots is extremely potent and is often used as a spice in Chinese cuisine to flavor dishes such as in seafood and mutton.

Ginger is also candied, is used as a flavoring for candy, cookies, crackers and cake, and is the main flavor in ginger ale, a sweet, carbonated, non-alcoholic beverage, as well as the similar, but somewhat spicier beverage ginger beer. A ginger-flavored liqueur called Canton is produced in the Guangdong province of China; it is advertised to be based on a recipe created for the rulers of the Qing Dynasty and made from six different varieties of ginger.

In Western cuisine, ginger is traditionally restricted to sweet foods, such as ginger ale, gingerbread, ginger snaps, ginger cake and ginger biscuits.

Powdered dry ginger root (ground ginger) is typically used to add spiciness to gingerbread and other recipes. Ground and fresh ginger taste quite different and ground ginger is a particularly poor substitute for fresh ginger.

A similiar appearing but unrelated, native species of eastern North America, Asarum canadense, is also known as "wild ginger", and its root has similar aromatic properties, should not be used as a substitute because it contains carcinogen aristolochic acid. This plant is also a powerful diuretic, or urinary stimulator. Stop to smell the flowers; just don't eat them.

Note the Red Fruit

With Selene we have come to know this archaic lunar deity who became the daughter of the titans Hyperion and Theia. In South America, as well as Southeast Asia, there is the “dragonfruit” born of Moonflowers on the cactus genus SELENicereus. The fruit takes the name of the lunar diety in that the cactus only flowers at night.

Common to produce departments of our grocery stores here, the legend of the dragonfruit says that the fruit was created by fire breathing dragons. The strength and ferocity of dragons can be obtained by eating the fruit.

The fruit has the size of a undersized nerf football and the weight of a cantelope. When diced for a fruit salad, it has a lightly sweet taste with the texture of a slightly overripe watermelon. It stains as red wine. The deeply red fruit can be eaten raw, is mildly sweet and low in calories. It is rich in fiber, vitamin C and has generous antioxidant properties. Sesame seed-sized seeds are embedded throughout the flesh adding to the texture.
It is said that dragonfruit helps prevent colon cancer and diabetes, neutralizes toxic substances such as heavy metal, reduces cholesterol levels and high blood pressure. The regular consumption of dragonfruit can help against asthma and cough.



Once again all photos have been taken by Gecko with his stained red gecko pads.